Desirae Akins-Qualls, 18, of Morgan Hill, is being sought by authorities after being reported as a missing person last seen walking to a bus stop on Monterey Road near Vineyard Boulevard on May 4, 2017.

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MORGAN HILL — Police are looking for an 18-year-old woman they have described as at-risk who has not been seen in a week since heading to a local bus stop on the way to school.

Desirae Akins-Qualls, of Morgan Hill, was last seen May 4 walking to a bus stop on Monterey Road and Vineyard Boulevard, where she was supposed to board a Valley Transportation Authority bus to San Jose, according to police.

But Akins-Qualls did not arrive at her school and has not been seen or heard from since, police said. They added that she has a history of depression, but that she did not give off any signs of distress before she disappeared.

“She has not made any suicidal threats and did not appear upset when she left home,” Morgan Hill police said in a news release.

Akins-Qualls is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall, weighing 220 pounds, with long-brown hair and hazel eyes. She also has a tattoo on an inside forearm.

Sgt. Carson Thomas said that Akins-Qualls was reported missing May 4, and that her image was distributed among law-enforcement agencies in the region. He added that family members told police that Akins-Qualls had left home before without telling anyone, but that her time away was longer than earlier instances.

“Desirae has gone voluntarily missing before, it was not out of the ordinary. She would then call a couple days later from a friend’s house,” Thomas said. “The biggest concern for us now is that she hasn’t called in a few days.”

Thomas also said that as of Thursday, there is no indication of any foul play in the disappearance.

“There is no concrete evidence for us of anything other than she didn’t show up to school, is 18 (years old) and chose not to call anybody,” he said.

He added that Akins-Qualls has not broken any laws, but that police, and her family, want to make sure she’s okay.

“We just need to verify that she’s fine,” Thomas said.

Anyone with information about her whereabouts can contact Morgan Hill police Detective Greg Dini at 669-253-4965 or leave a tip with Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers at 408-947-STOP or at svcrimestoppers.org.

Robert Salonga is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter covering crime and public safety for The Mercury News. A San Jose native, he attended UCLA and has a Master's degree in journalism from the University of Maryland. He previously reported in Washington, D.C., Salinas and the East Bay, and is a middling triathlete. Reach him the low-tech way at 408-920-5002.

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